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i UNITED STATES `PATENT OEEIGE.

DAWSON MILES, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS, ADMINISTRATOR OF r. r. OARLIER, DEcEAsED, AND FRANCE. h"

ALPHONSE A. C. VIGNON, OF PARIS:

IMPROVEMENT IN PROCESSES AND APPARATUS FOR EXTINGUISHING FIRE BY MEANS OF WATER-.CHARGED WITH CARBONIO ACID.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 88,844, dated April 13, 1869.

To a-ll whom it muy concern Be it known that the late PHILIPPE FRAN- ors CARLIER, of Paris, in the Empire of France, doctor of physics, and A. A. C. VIG- NoN, ex general officer of the corps of engineers in the Empire of France, also of Paris,

in the French Empire, invented certain Improvements in the Means of and Apparatus for Extinguishing Fires; and we. hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the drawings hereto annexed.

This invention has for its object the extinfguishin g of res in a more instantaneous and eiectual manner than is attainable by means inpresent use; and consists, rst, in .the employment of water charged with carbonio-acid gas, either at a high or at a low pressure, asthe extinguishing medium; and, secondly, in the construction of apparatus for containing and delivering this extinguishing medium, which apparatus may be made of an exceedingly Vportable nature, and kept always charged and ready for use, at a moments notice, at the particular locality which it is desired to protect.

The particular advantages to be derived from the employment of this improved system Y for extinguishing fires may be shortly stated 'inaccessible to the means and apparatus employed, or to the fact that at the time of commencement of the re (when every moments delay in checking it is of the utmost importance) no such means or apparatus are ready at hand for use.

Now, with aview to remedy these evils, ad-

-vantagehas been taken of the known facts, first, that water, when confined in a closed vessel, will dissolve or absorb carbonic-acid 'gas (a non-supporter'or extinguisher of combustion of a much more powerfulnature even than water) to an almost unlimited extent, without perceptibly increasing its weight or bulk; and, secondly, that the carbonio-acid gas, whenso held in solution in considerable quantities by water in a closed receptacle, will exert an exceedinglypowerful pressure, which, on allowing the mixture to escape from the vessel, will cause it to be propelled with great force to a considerable distance. By virtue of the above-named properties, therefore, one is enabled, irst, to employ vessels containing a comparatively small quantity of the above-named mixture, and consequently of an exceedingly portable nature, but yet representing a volume of fire-extinguishing materialmany times greater than the actual contents of the vessel; secondly, by keeping such vessels ready charged on the premises, one is enabled to make use of them at a moments notice by simply turning a cock or opening a valve, when the self-contained projective force of the carbonic-aeid gas will cause the mixture to be propelled to a considerable distance without the aid of pumps or other apparatus.

In order that the great efficacyof this sys- Jtem may be fully understood, it is only necessary to mention that water will absorb about one and a half times its own volume of carbonio-acid gas for every additional atmospheric pressure of fifteen pounds on the square inch to which it is subjected, and that consequently a quantity, say, six gallons, of water contained in a closed vessel, (a quantity that can with ease be carried on the back of a person,) vn'll absorb under a pressure of, say, six atmospheres, (or about ninety pounds on the square inch,) about nine times its own volume of carbonio-acid gas, and will, therefore, actually represent a quantity of sixty gallons of extinguishing-mixture of a more eflicacious nature than that quantity of water alone, and which, on opening the cock or valve ofthe vessel, may be projected from a distance of about thirty-eight feet upon a burning object, by the pressure ofthe gas alone. It will be evident, therefore, from the foregoing, th atif any number of such portable'apparatuses, containing, in a condensed form, ten times their volume of the extinguishing solution-that is, nine volumes of gas and one of waterready to be made use of at a moments notice, be

placed in buildings or on board ships, at or near Vthe various localities which it is partici ularly desired to protect from iire, then, in the case of a fire breaking out, not only is the most efficient means for checking the same ready to hand, but also, if the place where the iire originates is inconvenient to get at, such as the roof or cellar of a house, or the hold of a ship, one or more persons may fasten the before-described apparatus on his back, or their backs, and may climb or crawl to the otherwise inaccessible place, and extinguish the fire before it has time to spread.

We are aware that it is not new to employ carbonic-acid gas or other gases that are non-supporters of combustion as a means of extinguishin g fires; but such gases have always been employed by themselves, and have con'- sequently not been efficacious, rst, on account of a suicient pressure not being readily attainable by their employment in a gaseous form; and, secondly, because a jet of such gas alone, even if projected with the greatest available force from the vessel containing the same, would, on account of its want of mass or body, almostimmediately lose its momentum on passing into the atmosphere, and could not be thrown from any distance onto a burning object. l

Now, by the employment of this invention the carbonic-acid gas, which is held in solution in the water without at all losing its characteristic properties, is, on the solution being allowed to escape from the vessel, carried along with the jet of water with such avelocity that it arrives at the burning locality again st which it is directed without any material quantity of the same having escaped on its passage, and, on being liberated suddenly, when the jet of water strikes the burning object, it surrounds the latter with an atmosphere of carbonio-acid gas, which, in combination with the water itself, effectively operates in extinguishing the fire. A

Although, for reasons above stated, it is preferred to employ the solution of carbonic- -acid gas in water at a high pressure, yet we wish it to be understood that we do not limit ourselves to the employment of the solution in that form, as, in some cases, the water may be saturated with the gas at a low pressure, and may be thrown onto the burning object by means of force-pumps, in which case the solut-ion would still operate much more effectively than water alone.

Furthermore, although it is preferable to employ small portable vessels for containing this solution, that may be readily moved from lplace to place, yet in some cases the same may be arranged as stationary receptacles, situated at or near the localities which it. is desired to protect, and then they may be made of any desired capacity; or, in other cases, the apparatus maybe contrived to move on wheels. The solution of the carbonic-acid gas in the water and the charging of the vessels for containing the same may be effected in any known manner. Thus, the solution may be made by means of the apparatus ordinarily employed for making aerated waters, and `the vessels may be charged with the same at a manufactory of aerated waters; or such an apparatus may be kept on the premises for that purpose; or the gas may be generated and dissolved in the `water in the vessel itself which is to contain the solution, by introducing ingredients, such as are well known, into the vessel, that in combination with the water will disengage carbonic-acid gas. This mode of charging for the portable apparatus is preferred, in which H case they maybe arranged as shown on the accompanyin g drawing.

Figure l shows an elevation, Figs. 2 and 3 show longitudinal sections, through such an apparatus.

Similar letters of reference indicate similar parts in all the figures.

lA is a casing of sheet-steel or other suitable material capable of withstanding considerable pressure with a comparatively small thickness, so as to render the apparatus as light as possible. For portable apparatus it is preferable to make this casing of such a size that it will contain about six gallons of water, more or less. Its form is here shown cylindrical,

with slightly spherical ends, as being the most` convenient for use; but it may receive any other form that will effectually withstand internal pressure. This casing has an aperture at top, into which is screwed a plug, B, having attached to it a cylinder, C, closed at the bottom by a cork, D. The plug B has also an aperture, into which is screwed a second plug, E, to the lower end of which vis attached a metal rod, F, having a button, G, at

its extremity. To the upper end of this plug E is xed a perforated stem, H, having a stopcock, h, and arranged at top to receive a pressuregage. The perforation passes through the .plug E, as shown, and communicates with the interior of the casing A, so that when the pressuregage is. screwed onto the stem H, and the cock h is open, the pressure-gage will indicate the pressure existing inside the casing. At the lower extremity the casing A is provided with a stop-cock, I, the inner opening of which is covered by a perforated shield, J, in order to prevent any solid substances from entering the same. Upon the outer end ofthe stop-cock is fixed a length of flexible tubing or hose, K, having a suitably-formed deliverynozzle, L, attached to it. To the exterior of the casing A are fixed handles or loops M M, serving either to carry the apparatus by, or to receive the hooks of shoulder-straps, so as to be slung on the back of a person.

The mode of charging this apparatus is as follows: The plug B being removed, the casing A is filled with water, to which is added one of the ingredients employed for generating carbonic-acid gas, such as bicarbonate of soda. The tube C being held in a reversed position, and the plug E and rod F being in the position as shown in Fig. 2, it is filled with the other of the ingredients employed -ratus in the for generating carbonio-acid gas, such as tartaric acid. The openkend of the tube'is then closed with the cork D, and it is inserted in the vessel A, the plug Bbeing screwed into the opening of the same, as shown. If required,

a pressure-gage is xed to the stem H of the plug` E, and this latter is then screwed down into the position as shown at Fig. 3, by which the button G at the end of the rod F will have pushed out the corkv D, and, the water penetrating into the tube C and mixing with the ingredients contained therein, carbonic acid gas will be generated in great quantities, and will be taken up or dissolved by the water to an extent and at a pressure corresponding with and depending on the quantity of ingredients employed for generating the same.

g In the portable apparatus just described such quantities of the ingredients may be employed las will generate a pressure of about six atmospheres, or about ninety pounds to the square inch, when, as before stated, the water will absorb the carb'onic-acid gas in the proportion of about nine volmnes of gas to one of water.

The apparatus, as described, may be made ornamental externally, and placed, ready charged, at or near the locality which it is desired to protect from re.

a lire occurs, the apparatus is slung upon the back of a person, by means of shoulder-straps, as shownat Fig. 4, and he, regulating the opening of the cock with his left hand, as shown, directs the delivery-nozzle with his right hand, and causes the contents 0f the apparatus to be thrown upon the burning object, when the exceedingly energetic action ofthe carbonic-acid gas, combined with that of the water, will speedily and most eiiectually extinguish the fire.

'If preferred, instead of charging the appamanner described, it may be manufactory of aerated waters, in which case the flexible tube K is removed from'the cock I, and the latter is attached to the apparatus for charging the vessel, the cock h being open to allow the escape of the air as the mixture enters the vessel. In this case the tube C and rod F may, of course, be dispensed with, or they may be provided so thatthe charging may be effected in either way at pleasure. In some cases,

charged at a instead of fixing the pressf ure-gage to the top of the plug E, as described,

it may be arranged as shown in Fig. 5, where the plugE is not perforated, and a separate tube, H, with the cock h, is provided, into which the pressure-gage is screwed. The object of the pressure-gage is principally to ascertain, from f time to time, whether the requisite pressure is still maintained in the vessel, so as to render it fit for instantaneous use, as, without this precaution, a leakage, if ever so small, might occur unknown, and the gas might nearly all escape, so as to render the apparatus useless when it was wanted. If, however, the requisite ingredients were kept ready at hand, even Y quire,

in such a case thisdei'ect might be quickly remedied by the introduction of fresh materials for generating the gas.

Sometimes several of the before-described apparatus are arranged upon a truck running on wheels, as shown at Figs. 6 and l7, which show, respectively, a front view andan end view of the truck. The apparatus may either be made use of while on the truck, or they may be removed from the same and carried on the back, as described 5 or, instead of having several small apparatus on a truck, one large one placed upon wheels and furnished with 011e or more delivery-hose and nozzles may be used.

Fig. 8 shows the arrangement which is preferred to be employed as a stationary apparatus fixed at or near the locality which it is desired to protect from irc.' rangement of thme same is similar to that of the portable apparatus before described, the principal difference being that it is of much larger dimensions, and that the details rein consequence, to be somewhat dilerently arranged. It may be charged by means of an aerated-water apparatus; but it is preferable to charge it by means of ingredients involving carbonio acid gas, as beforedescribed with re 'erence to the other apparatus.

A is the casing of sheet-steel or other suitable material for withstanding considerable pressure. It has an opening at top, which is closed by a suitable lid, B, pressed down over the opening by means of the screws N N working in the bridge-piece P. To this lid is attached the tube C for containing one of' the ingredients for generating carbonic-acid gas, which tube has an opening, c, at bottom capable of being closed by the valve D fixed to the rod F, working up and down in a threaded hole formed in the cover. The bridge-piece P is formed with hinges, so as vto turn down and enable the tube C to pass out of the casing.

`I is the outlet-cock, of which there may be more than one. K is the flexible hose, and L the delivery-nozzle. Q is the pressure-gage.

In charging this apparatus, the tube C is removed, and the vessel A is filled with water in which one of the ingredients for generating carbonio-acid gas is dissolved. The tube C is then filled through the opening c with the other ingredients, and, the valve D being closed, it is placed into the vessel Aagain, the cover B being pressed tightly onto its seat by the screws N N. The rod F is then screwed down, so as to open the valve D, as shown, when the generation and absorption of carbonic-acid gas will take place, as already described with reference to the other arrangement.

Such xed apparatus may be made of any suitable dimensions or form, according to the requirements of the localities where it is to be employed. If the apparatus is of so great a capacity that the pressure in the same Would vary very considerably during the discharge of the solution, in that case it is preferred to The general aremploy an auxiliary apparatus, as shown at R, connected to the casing A by means of a tube and stop-cock, S. This auxiliary apparatus serves to generate carbonio-acid gas, which is allowed to pass into the main apparatus during the time that the latter is in action, in order to maintain the requisite pressure in the same up to the end ofthe discharge. The auxiliary apparatus may,for this purpose, be made of about one--thirtieth the capacity of the main apparatus, and it is provided with a tube, T, for containing one of the ingredients., a valve, U, and valve-rod V, attached to the screwplug, as also a perforated stem, Y, for a pressure-gage, as described, with reference to the other apparatus. It isYV only lled to such an extent with water as will effectually cause the greatest possible amount of the carbonic-acid gas to be evolved. Besides serving to replenish the main apparatus with gas during action, this auxiliaryT apparatus may also be employed to supply the former with gas while charging, by which the water would be agitated, and thereby the absorption oi' the gas by the same facilitated. The cock X in the auxiliary apparatus serves to discharge the water from the same after action.

The above-described improved means and apparatus, whether portable oriixed, may be with great advantage applied on board ships,

particularly where these are divided into water-tight compartments, and they may, in such cases, be eectually made use of to check spontaneous combustion in the hold or other part of the vessel by leading one or more tubes from the apparatus to such locality, and connecting them there to other tubes provided with numerous perforations, and arranged in a zigzag manner over the space which-it is required to protect. Then, if it is suspected that spontaneous combustion is taking place among the materials stowed in the hold, by opening the communication between the apparatus containing the solution of water and carbonic-acid gas at a high pressure, and the perforated pass with considerable force through the perforated tubes, and the energetic action of the carbonic-acid gas, together with that of the water, will immediately and ei'ectually check the spontaneous combustion, and extinguish any ignitedportions, and the carbonio-acid gas, being considerably heavier than the atmospheric air, will displace the latter from that compartment of the hold, and thus preventing the access of oxygen to the materials will protect them from further spontaneous combustion.

Having now described the nature of this invention, and the best means of performing the same,- we Wish it to be understood that we in no way limit ourselves to any particular mode of applying the solution of carbonic-acid gas in water for extinguishing res, neither to the precise arrangements, forms, and dimensions of apparatus for preparing, containing, and delivering the solution., as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawing; neither to any particular ingredients for or method of preparing the solution of carbonio-acid gas in Water; nor do we claim the use Vof carbonio-acid gas when employed by itself for extinguishing fires; but

l. The employment of a solution of carbonicacid gas in Water, either at a high or at a low pressure, for extinguishing ires on land or on board Vessels. l l

2. The construction and emi'ilo'yment of apparatus, either portable or xed, for extinguishing res, in which a solution of carbonicacid gas in Water is prepared and stored up,

tubes placed' in such locality, the mixture will and whence such solution is ejected with the v requisite force without the aid of pumps.

l). MILES,

Administrator of F; Carlier, deceased. A. A. C. VIGNON. Witnesses:

O. C. KETCHAM, H. MELyILLn GURLEY. 

